As one road reopens and another closes

Footstreets extended to support Castlegate “businesses and social distancing”

With Bishopthorpe Road due to reopen on Monday, the York Council has issued a statement saying “We are creating additional outdoor space on Castlegate, after businesses grouped together to put forward proposals to transform the road into footstreets and use the space for pavement cafes & stalls”.

The one way street is not used by through traffic so the main impact will be on disabled parking and servicing.  No criteria on how the success of the project will be judged have been published.

Castlegate will be extended into the city centre pedestrian zone to help support local businesses by providing residents more space to social distance and making access to city centre restaurants, pubs, cafes, shops and businesses easier, as part of the emergency response to COVID-19.

The actions are designed to support the council’s Economic Recovery – Transport and Place Strategy, to build resident, visitor and stakeholder confidence that York is a safe, healthy and attractive place for everyone.

York has one of the largest pedestrian zones in Europe, with many areas within York’s city centre already designated as pedestrian footstreets.

In line with the Government guidance on public spaces and relaxing the restrictions for the hospitality sector this month, the council is extending the footstreet hours, which are expected to be in place from 8 August. This means no vehicles are allowed to access, or park on, these streets, including deliveries between 10.30am 8pm, seven days a week.  During the footstreet times, barriers will be in place in Castlegate to control access, but emergency vehicles will be permitted access at all times.

These are temporary measures as part of the emergency response to the pandemic and will remain under review as national guidance evolves and local needs change.

The council wants to encourage people who have been working from home all day to head in to the city centre to eat, relax and socialise in a family-friendly early evening environment.  Alongside this, the council is encouraging the safe return of residents and visitors by incentivising short stay parking in some of the city’s car parks.

This includes offering 1 hour free parking in August to support local businesses and residents and encouraging people to shop local. More on this can be found here: www.york.gov.uk/news/article/235/free-parking-supports-economy

In addition to this, Blue Badge holders can, as has always been the case, park for free in any council car park and can take advantage of using disabled bay spaces in council car parks too. For more information on council car parks visit www.york.gov.uk/parking